title: Prevalence and clinical relevance of 52-kDa and 60-kDa Ro/SS-A autoantibodies in Japanese patients with systemic sclerosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence of 52-Kda and 60-Kda Ro/SS-A autoantibodies in serum samples from Japanese patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc).
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum samples from 263 Japanese patients with SSc were examined by double immunodiffusion and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  By double immunodiffusion, 29 serum samples from patients with SSc were found to possess anti-Ro/SS-A antibodies. By ELISA, 31 serum samples were positive for anti-Ro52 and/or anti-Ro60. Of 27 serum samples that were positive by both methods, 15 reacted with both Ro52 and Ro60, five with Ro52 alone, and seven with Ro60 alone. Eleven of 12 patients with both anti-Ro52 and anti-Ro60 and all five patients with anti-Ro52 alone had Sjögren's syndrome, while only one of six patients with anti-Ro60 alone had this disorder.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Anti-Ro52 may be a serological marker for the presence of Sjögren's syndrome in anti-Ro/SS-A-positive patients with SSc.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujimoto
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimozuma
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yazawa
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kubo
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ihn
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tamaki
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kikuchi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tamaki
mesh_terms: D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008970:Molecular Weight; D015995:Prevalence; D012595:Scleroderma, Systemic / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D012859:Sjogren's Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000974:Antibodies, Antinuclear; D015415:Biomarkers; C035356:SS-A antibodies